Welcome back to DU3! We have updates!

This discussion thread was locked by Skinner (a host of the Announcements group).

If this is your first visit to DU3 Preview you might want to check out the thread "What's new in DU3 (updated Feb 16 2011)" (http://www.du3preview.com/10136), which explains the main differences between the new message board software here at DU3Preview.com and the old software at DemocraticUnderground.com. But for those of you who have visited before, this thread contains a list of changes we've made since the last preview a few weeks ago.

Once again, please be aware that since this software is still under development a number of features that you currently enjoy on DU are not available on DU3 Preview at this time, but rest assured they will be included in the final release. Also be aware that this is a public preview of discussion forum software that is currently under development. This is not a finished product; visitors should expect to encounter bugs, broken links, unfinished features, or other issues typical of software under development.

What's new since the last preview

Avatars and signature lines

Avatars and signature lines are now available and can be selected and edited from your My Profile page. Just click the My Profile link which can be found at the top right of every page. (Please note that it is not possible to upload your own avatar just yet, but that functionality will be included in the final version.)

Emoticons

Emoticons are now working on DU3 Preview -- and we've added some new ones. For a full list of emoticons and their codes, click here: http://www.du3preview.com/emoticons/index.html (please note that the list of emoticons currently opens on a new page -- the emoticons list will be better integrated in the final version of the software).

Wide format

There is now a Wide format version of DU3, which removes the left-hand navigation bar on many pages and stretches the site layout to fit the full width of your monitor. The Wide format is a little closer to the original DU layout. You can change formats at any time from the Preferences section of your My Account page. Just click the My Account link which can be found at the top right of every page.

Mobile format

For smartphone users there is now a Mobile format available. This is a radically different format which is optimized for smartphones and other mobile devices -- but you can still use Mobile format in your computer's web browser if you like. You can select Mobile format at any time from the Preferences section of your My Account page. Just click the My Account link which can be found at the top right of every page. (Please note that while Mobile format is currently working, it's not fully functional yet. In particular, we have not yet programmed functionality to automatically detect when you are visiting from a mobile device -- for now, you must manually choose the Mobile mobile version from your My Account page.)

My Posts

My Posts is now available -- just click the My Posts tab at the top of any page. The new DU3 My Posts page is different from the old DU version. Here are the main changes:

* The new "Replies to me" column lists the exact number of direct replies to your post.
* If there are replies, you can click the little arrow to show the title and poster of the replies, right there on the My Posts page.
* When there are new replies, the arrow turns yellow. (Click the "Mark as read" button to reset icons to white.)
* Posts now kick to the top of the page when there are new replies, just like in a regular forum.
* The page can be sorted either by the time that you posted, or by the time that someone replies.
* We no longer have a 48 hour time limit on the My Posts page. The new time limit is... infinity!

That's it for now -- we hope you enjoy the new updates, and please excuse any bugs you may come across. We are still working hard on getting this whole thing together.

11. The screenshot appears to be 800 pixels across.

Each of the tabs is 140 pixels, so they should fit on your screen. I suspect you may be magnifying the view on your web browser. You can decrease the magnification by clicking "View > Zoom > Zoom out" on your web browser.

Another solution is to increase your screen resolution so it actually uses the entire 1024 pixels of your monitor.

And another solution is to view DU3 in Mobile format. Go to "My Account" and click "Mobile."

23. Ok, I think I may have fixed the problem so you can view DU3 in Standard or Classic format.

Go back to "My Account" and change to either "Standard" or "Classic" format. (I would suggest "Classic" because your screen is fairly narrow and it'll help to have the left-column removed when you are reading forums and discussion threads.)

There should now be a line break in between the tabs, so the "My Subscriptions" tab and the "My Posts" tab appear below the other three tabs, and do not require you to scroll.

If the problem isn't fixed, hold the "Shift" key and then click the "Reload/Refresh" button on your web browser. (This will make sure you have downloaded the most recent version of the page formatting.)

If that doesn't work, post another screenshot so I can figure out the problem.

8. But you guys are the best in the known universe

25. Oh, man, I hope you do figure it out.

I've been doing some research and many times old DU posts have come in very handy. When I've looked for a couple of given topics, I've come up with some long lists of very helpful resources. It's losing lots of information if that's not available.

13. They will be.

9. Change good or bad....does not come easy for me.....

But I really like what you all have done...Now if you could arrange for DU to read my mind, that would be really great.....I have a prolem with my fingers they don\'t work like they should, so many mistakes especially if I rush, really like the longer edit time....

12. That is going to be fixed.

15. Any plans for a nifty bookmarklet to post links?

A lot of sites where you can post links have a little javascript bookmark you can add to your browser\'s bookmarks. Some of them get pretty fancy. Not sure if it would be possible with all of DUs forums. Maybe just a popup that allows you to select which forum and, once you click a button in the popup, it starts you off in the DU post form, with the link already in the post and maybe the title matching the article\'s title. Just a thought, for future upgrades perhaps.

Edited to add: I'm sure you guys know how such things work but just to be clear, the bookmarklet is something you would click while viewing another site that you want to post about on DU.

26. I love some of the new features! The new organization & navigation is fabu!

I'm with a lot of people who've responded to the new edit functions, though. I love that you can now edit indefinitely! I don't like the public display of edits though -- that one gets a big thumbs down from me.

Example: the new policy of mods giving a poster a chance to edit/change a post or have it yanked. And say the post needs to be edited for something inflammatory. Why would you keep the inflammatory part up there? Or even someone changing after a little feedback from DUers . Why keep it up there? It just doesn't make any sense to me.

Editing to add: some of the things that stand out that I also love are the groups all listed on the side -- that'll make me much more likely to visit groups and it eliminates steps, which I love. Really like the new look. There's more but I gotta go!